By Mark Baber
January 4 – The Russian Football Union (RFU) is to nominate Moscow as host of the 2021 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, according to deputy president Sergei Anokhin.
Since Vitaly Mutko, as Minister of Sport, supported reviving Russia’s national beach soccer team in 2005, Russia has gone on to become the second most successful national side in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, winning the tournament twice.
Anokhin told TASS: “We will be striving for hosting the 2021 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Moscow.”
Mutko, of course, recently resigned from heading up Russia’s World Cup preparations to focus on clearing his name, despite the December 2017 IOC report finding no independent and impartial evidence of his personal involvement in the Grigory Rodchenkov doping scandal.
Since coming under FIFA auspices, the beach soccer tournament has been staged in Brazil (2005, 2006, 2007), France (2008), the United Arab Emirates (2009), Italy (2011), Tahiti (2013), Portugal (2015) and in the Bahamas (2017). The host for the 2019 finals is yet to be decided, with Paraguay having thrown its hat into the ring.
Current holders are Brazil who beat Tahiti 6-0 in the final on 7 May 2017. Since the Beach Soccer World Cup became a FIFA tournament in 2005, Brazil have won the five times (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2017), Russia are the second most successful side with wins in 2011 and 2013. Portugal have won the trophy once (2015) and Eric Cantona’s France won it in 2005.
Moscow has been a regular venue for the Euro Beach Soccer League and will be the host city for the opening matches and final of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
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